zxcvbob > wrote in message >...
> Melba's Jammin' wrote:
>
> >
> > You sure work hard.
>
> Ha. I've got you fooled.
>
> > I've got my asbestos skivvies on so any replies won't be bothering me:
> > I read "somewhere" - sure wish I'd paid more attention to where I read
> > it (I"d venture to say it was from some Unis extension division) -
> > recently that stuff made with added pectin tastes better (fresher?)
> > because of the quick cook. I'm inclined to agree. My opinion.
>
> There are crabapples everywhere here this year. I've never seen so many
> before. I'll pick some more and try using the steam juicer and see how
> it does. I didn't want to run the steamer for 2 hours last night and
> steam up the house.
>
> > And as I said in my email, I did both ways this summer and the stuff
> > with the Ball Fruit Jell powder (I've given up on Sure?Jell due to cost)
> > was better and won the 4th Place ribbon. It was also from a different
> > batch of juice than the stuff I did long-cook. Five cups juice to 7
> > cups sugar for 8 (?) half-pint jars.
> >
> > Let the games begin!
>
> Adding the sugar and boiling for hours will concentrate the flavors, but
> it will drive off any aroma and subtle flavor notes. Quick jelly made
> with added pectin will be less concentrated juice but won't be cooked as
> much. A good compromise might be using the long-boil-no-pectin method,
> but do small batches and cook them in a non-stick wok over very high
> heat -- so the jelly cooks up in just a few minutes.
>
> I like berry jams and jellies better when they are made with added
> pectin. When they are cooked for hours, they don't taste like much
> anymore except sweet, sour, and purple. I don't really have an opinion
> on apple jellies yet cuz I don't have enough experience with them.
>
> This is such an opinionated bunch of folks, I figured I'd get lots of
> data points to add to the experimenting that I am doing. [damn, I'm
> talking like Dilbert again]
>
> Best regards, :-)
> Bob


I curious to see how your experiment turns out. I did pretty much the
same thing to get the juice from my crabapples. But the juice is high
in natural pectin (was jelling outside the jelly bag), so I'm not sure
yet how I will proceed. I too, prefer the quick cook, added pectin
taste, but I'm afraid that if I add pectin to something that already
has lots of it, I'll end up with sweet crabapple tasting cement.
However, I don't want to long cook, because it will change the taste
and colour. So it's all frozen for now, 'cause I'm not sure what to
do next.

So let me/us know how it turns out. Perhaps I'll learn from your
mistakes, er, success ;-)

Kathi